


Good Vibes Only

by LexiusNemean



Category: Nerdcore, Real Person Fiction
Genre: Alternate Universe - Demon Slayer (Kimetsu no Yaiba), First Meetings, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Joke Fic, Sorry I got so gooey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:21:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26831338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LexiusNemean/pseuds/LexiusNemean
Summary: "Beast breath, you said?"Shwabadi couldn’t help the cocky smirk that twitched onto his face. “/Beat/ breath. Though this wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been called a beast.”---Demon Slayer AU of Shwabadi and Freeced because I'm a clown
Relationships: Shwabadi (Mark) & Freeced (Graham)
Kudos: 2





	Good Vibes Only

**Author's Note:**

> I actually spent a night writing this, I'm so fucking mad. I don't even know if Freeced likes Demon Slayer. 
> 
> I didn't use their real names in the fic because it felt weird. I think it also probably feels weird to try to immerse yourself in a piece of fiction the insists on using rapper names, but I'm prioritizing my comfort over yours. This is the one shred of dignity I am allowing myself to keep.
> 
> If you're reading this and you don't know who Shwabadi or Freeced are for some reason, here's their links:  
> Freeced: https://linktr.ee/freeced  
> Shwabadi: linktr.ee/shwabadi

(Inspired partially by the Demon Slayer portrait Shwabadi commissioned from [Jigs](https://twitter.com/mc_jiggles).)

“Beast breath, you said?”

Shwabadi couldn’t help the cocky smirk that twitched onto his face. “No, though this wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been called a beast.” 

Normally he wouldn’t jump to jokes with a stranger, but something about the man sitting across from him brought out the sort of humor Shwabadi normally reserved for friends. Resolving to compose himself, he took a sip of tea and cleared his head. “ _Beat_ breath, is what I practice.”

The young man at the other end of the table—Freeced, if he remembered right—nodded thoughtfully. “And what you do requires a lot of breath control? I’ll admit, when I think of deep breathing it’s usually only in the context of calming down anxiety.”

Shwabadi had been a swordsman with the Demon Slayer Corps for a few years now, and he’d like to think he was pretty good at it. The fact that he had survived so long doing what he did spoke plenty—though that wasn't to say his job was always nonstop fighting. Between missions there were plenty of quiet moments like this one, where he would wander into a town and be invited into a stranger’s home for a good meal and a place to rest. While this situation was far from uncommon, there had been something different about the way Freeced had called out to him. There had been a knowing gleam in his eye, a sort of recognition Shwabadi hadn't known what to attribute to.

“You really know nothing about my craft?”

When Freeced smiled it almost mirrored the grin of the dinosaur drawn on his cup. “I don’t know much about fighting, if that’s what you’re asking. Demon slayers pass through every now and then, though: I hear of swordsmen with certain abilities that help them survive, things like keen senses of smell or sensitive hearing. Have you come across things like that?”

Shwabadi nodded, though he didn’t quite see where this was going. “I can think of a few people like that.”

“I see." It seemed to please him, even though the answer had been one he'd obviously been fishing for. "Well, I might have one of those strong senses, too...though I’m not sure if you’ll believe me.”

“Try me.” Ah, there it was again. There was something about Freeced, the comfortable air around him, that made it hard to be anything but casual. It bred familiarity when there should have been none, stripping away layers of defense that normally only time and trust could get through. 

Luckily, Freeced didn’t seem bothered by his informality—in fact, it seemed to bring a gleam to his eye. He leaned in conspiratorially, looking as if he was about to spill a secret he couldn't wait to share. “I can sense _vibes_.”

“Vibes?”

Freeced nodded in excited jerks, needing to push back a stray lock of hair that had flown forward. “When demons come near I’m often the first to know, their bad vibes always give them away. Because of that I’ve gotten used to calling on the demon slayer corps and taking measures to keep the town here safe. Everyone here is like family, you know...I wanna protect them if I can.”

Sometime during this Freeced seemed to get lost in thought, looking out the window at the people passing by. His gaze was filled with obvious warmth as he watched his neighbors, fondness painting over every feature. Eventually, though, he seemed to blink out of his reverie and turn back with an apologetic grin.

“Anyway, I appreciate the work you do! I try to offer my hospitality to anyone from your organization...but to be honest, I called you out specifically because of the vibes you gave off.” Half a pause passed before he jumped in to add, “—that’s a good thing, by the way!”

Shwabadi felt a grin sneaking back onto his face. “Well, one of my mottos is ‘good vibes only’.”

“I can tell!” Freeced seemed to relax, any momentary tension melting off his shoulders. If there was any fear of a misunderstanding or a misstep, it seemed to drain out with his laughter. Even though nothing funny had been said, Shwabadi couldn't help but laugh along with him.

“This place is lucky to have you.”

“Oh, I don’t do that much." Freeced sat back with a shrug of his shoulders, his eyes flickering down to his tea. "I try to check in when I sense someone feeling down, but, y'know...there’s not much else I can manage by myself.”

Shwabadi already knew that wasn't the full truth, and was ready to say as much, but as a stranger it wasn’t his place to argue. Still, he didn’t need any heightened sense to detect there was something special about Freeced, a hidden potential. “And what is it that you do?”

“I’m a poet.”

Shwabadi smiled. “A poet...I can imagine I might have been one, in another life. Could I see something you wrote?”

When Freeced smiled back Shwabadi stopped trying to remind himself they weren't friends. Maybe they already were, as little as they knew about one another. Or maybe they would be eventually, and in the end it wouldn't matter when it happened.

It was easy to be around him, and that wasn't something he really needed question; the guy just had good vibes. In a world like this, he could take as many of those as he could get.


End file.
